11/98 Rockfish Gap to Reed's Gap (17 miles)

The nuttiness continued with the decision to hike with Felix and a coworker named Stacy.  Coincidentally, they *knew* each other.  Stacy found out I backpacked and one thing led to another...and pretty soon I'd met Blue Noodle ('96).  Felix had attempted in 1996, but did not finish.  Stacy and Felix were both Southbounders, so we were, of course, going south.  Felix was running very late, even for a southbounder, but he did finish the trail (around Xmas, I think.)

Stacy brought his fiancee along, and thank goodness, she hadn't really backpacked before.  This slowed things down a lot, which I very much appreciated.  Stacy and Wanda were planning a PCT hike in 1999 as their honeymoon.  She wound up with sciatica, which is excruciatingly painful, and they came back after about 400 miles.

It was fun, and it was my first night spent at a shelter and the first time I'd hiked with *serious* long distance hikers.  I lived, I learned and man, was I sore the next day.